Losing the ability

Hi all. I have been lucid dreaming for as long as i can remember...since long before I knew of the term "lucid dreaming". Probably since around the age of 5 or 6. Now, these dreams were never as intense as ones i've heard or read about, but i often became aware of the fact that i was dreaming, and was able to control it to some extent. when i was younger, this was usually only used to get myself out of scary situations - for example, in one dream I had when I was about 6, a crocodile ate my torso. i then said to myself "this is my dream, and i want a body," and voila, a new body appeared. I told many people about this at the time, but out of everyone i knew only my sister and i were able to do it.

my level of control peaked around the time Britney Spears had her first single "hit me baby one more time" (no connection between the two, just that i know they both occurred around the same time, and i'm not sure how many years ago this was). At this stage, once aware of the fact i was dreaming, i was able, about 25% of the time or so, to wipe the dream completely, so that It was just me and whiteness all around, and from that I was able to construct entire dreamscapes. all this with no reality checks, with no verbal commands, simply using my mind.

a few years later, i learned that lucid dreaming is a skill, and is trainable. it was around this time that, although fascinated with this new outlook, i began to lose control once aware i was dreaming. not that it hadnt happened before - in earlier years i would quite often find myself becoming mute or paralised mid-dream. however, this also happened around the same time as my non-lucid dreams became very vivid and exciting, and upon lengthy discussions with friends who had been lucid dreaming for years, i decided that (for that moment in time at least) the anonymity of dreaming and the idea that you think it's real adds to the excitement.

this was about three years ago. although i still lucid dream from time to time (again, mostly without reality checks - although sometimes with them), i either don't have the desire (in the dreams) to control them, or i forget that i can control them, or i begin controlling them and find myself losing power or waking up prematurely.

My questions are, has anyone else experienced this? it feels as if i'm growing out of lucid dreaming, as if i've explored most of the facets available to me (although i was never able to fly in my dreams - for some reason i never tried), and while dreaming i experience a "what's the point?" kind of mindset. is it common to lose the ability after a while, if you do not take steps to strengthen it? and ultimately, do lucid dreamers in general see any value in non-lucid dreams? i myself found lucid dreams got quite boring after a while...they mostly either involved beautiful natural landscapes, copious amounts of sex, or becoming spiderman...and although i'm sure these are common lucid dreams and i know there are an infinite amount to be had, i find something....for lack of a better word, romantic....about the spontaneity of regular dreams.